[ZJee]

I finally got around to modeling the pad mounting rings for the Fostex TH variants. I didn't have an immediate need for them, but I have seen a few people ask for them I figure that they should exist. At 0.1mm resolution they print very close to the quality of the injection-molded part, though they could probably use some tweaks in the 0.05mm tolerance range. They work, though!

Would you mind posting a link to the file for these rings?

 

[analog'd]

just got my mahogany th-x00 in this afternoon. these cans really don't suck

i hope i haven't gone on too long or been too technical in my description.

 

[Stratos24]

  just got my mahogany th-x00 in this afternoon. these cans really don't suck

i hope i haven't gone on too long or been too technical in my description.

Nah, that is a perfectly fine succinct depiction of the audio characteristics of the TH-X00.  ;}

 

[rvcjew]

Would you mind posting a link to the file for these rings?

Yes this please!

 

[ZJee]

Yes this please!

I pmed the guy awhile ago and he wont respond.

 

[Share2Care]

Good Evening Yall!
 
Must say I am very fond of my Purple Hearts, especially as time goes by but I do have an issue which I am hoping you can help me with as the headband does not look nor feel particularly solid and the padding is not great. The bend in the middle is concerning!
 
What can I do to strengthen the headband and improve how comfortable it is? Based here in the UK so for ordering local / EU would be great but if I had to go further afield I would.Also any recommended ear pads?
 
Please help my fellow TH-X00 brothers & sisters!
 
Cheers 

 

[ZJee]

Good Evening Yall!

Must say I am very fond of my Purple Hearts, especially as time goes by but I do have an issue which I am hoping you can help me with as the headband does not look nor feel particularly solid and the padding is not great. The bend in the middle is concerning!

What can I do to strengthen the headband and improve how comfortable it is? Based here in the UK so for ordering local / EU would be great but if I had to go further afield I would.Also any recommended ear pads?

Please help my fellow TH-X00 brothers & sisters!

Cheers 

Im the guy who posted mine with the dt770 headband on massdrop so you know what i have to say about that. As for the new pads, dont bother. Every single other pad you try with the th x00 wil make the sound 5 times worse, the trade for comfort isnt worth it.

 

[Share2Care]

Im the guy who posted mine with the dt770 headband on massdrop so you know what i have to say about that. As for the new pads, dont bother. Every single other pad you try with the th x00 wil make the sound 5 times worse, the trade for comfort isnt worth it.

 
Evening Mate
 
Really appreciate the advice on the headband. I am literally looking to order one on Ebay tonight and I thought to myself has anyone else done anything other than you that kindly informed me....Please do not take it as a negative towards you because it absolutely is not. I can promise you that. 
 
Not sure I asked, but with the DT770 headband, does it actually help to strengthen its limp excuse for a headband...
 
Thanks for the advice on the ear pads. Duly noted!
 
Appreciate you taking the time and certainly worth the reputation for it mate.
 
Cheers

 

[ZJee]

Evening Mate

Really appreciate the advice on the headband. I am literally looking to order one on Ebay tonight and I thought to myself has anyone else done anything other than you that kindly informed me....Please do not take it as a negative towards you because it absolutely is not. I can promise you that. 

Not sure I asked, but with the DT770 headband, does it actually help to strengthen its limp excuse for a headband...

Thanks for the advice on the ear pads. Duly noted!

Appreciate you taking the time and certainly worth the reputation for it mate.

Cheers

Yeah, i didnt mean to make it sound negative, id do the same thing and id love to see the replies you get. It feels to me like it does strengthen it but it could just be because its thicker. I guess youl just have to find out. Ive seen people make a leather strap similar to AKGs but i never bothered with these simply because i think it would leave too little room for my large head.

 

[Denmark]

I have owned my pair of TH-X00 Purplehearts since the first drop. I have always loved their sound signature. But as time passed, i found myselfe using them much less than i had first anticipated and planned for, mainly due to one (major) reason: comfort issues! Those stock pads (of doom) digging into your skull. And having other more comfortable alternatives around, the Purplehearts sadly became a pure decorative item in my collection.
 
So i startet looking for the perfect pads:
 

1. Brainwavz HM5 Angled Sheepskin
2. Brainwavz HM5 Angled Velour
3. Brainwavz HM5 non angled Sheepskin
4. Dekoni TH900
5. Dekoni TH-X00 (old version)
6. Beyerdynamic velour pads
7. Various cheap knockoffs from Ebay that fit

 
None of them came close to the intimate and punchy sound of the stock pads. As a last attempt, before giving up and forever banishing them to my dusty shelves, i tried one last thing: the attunement rings that the original pads have glued and stitched inside of them. Not wanting to destroy the original pads-of-awesomeness-and-doom, i went into Adobe Illustrator and made vectorized cutout paths from Fostex specifications, send them to a laser cutting company here in Copenhagen, and asked them to fabricate some for me out of 1mm hardened Styrene. I then bought a pair of ZMF Ori/Omni angled sheepskin pads (Kings of comfort), and really havent looked back since. Is it stock sound? Not completely. But it's so close.. enough that im not missing anything from the original pads. Yes, the original pads does sound just a tad more tight and firm, but for a daily driver, the comfort and close-to-stock sound is a really easy tradeoff.
 
Theres a big difference with and without those inserts/attunement rings with regards to the stock sound. Im not sure about the physics of the whole thing, but i guess they work as a kind of filter.. blocking resonance...? heck, im not sure, and frankly i don't really care: Fostex diddnt put them there for fun, and they work. 
 
I can't link to the PDF here, so send me a PM of you need the vector for the cutouts.
 
 

Cutouts 1mm hardened Styrene
 

Cutouts 1mm hardened Styrene
 

View from the ZMF Oris with the attunement ring and the attachement ring on top.
The shape needs to be alligned with the oval of the ZMF pads. They fit perfectly.
 

The original pads next to the cutouts
 

TH-X00 PH with ZMF pads
 

Thickness comparison. Seems the Fostex is 0,5mm, but plastic, therefore the 1mm Styrene.
 

Finally the ZMF pads next to the original pads

 

[CoFire]

I just mounted the Dekoni attenuation rings in my ZMF Eikon pads on a THX00 Mahogany and yowsers! Subbass! More fullness to percussions if these didn't already bring it. 100% recommended. Now, the stock sound awesome but when listening to Chevelle, the stock configuration lacks the subbass reproduction from many of their tracks. I didn't realize this until I went to a Chevelle concert. I wanted that feeling or closer to it.

2 weekends ago, I listened to a friend's TH900 with ZMF Cowhide angled pads (similar to Alpha pad dimensions) and next to my THX00 PH stock, the TH900 bass was more deep, full and enjoyable but not worth the price jump from $450 to ~$1400. I then pulled the stock pads off my THX00 Mahogany, placed them on the TH900's, then listened side by side next to my THX00 PH stock and whereas before they were near comparable on bass, now my first reaction is, where did the bass go on the PH? The TH900 reproduction was outstanding and the control was great. Not flabby bass, but tight, full, controlled and IMPACTFUL notes. The attenuation plates are no hype!

I loaned my PH's to a friend but when I get them back, I'm putting these attenuation plates/ZMF Eikon pads on them to get more subbass. I'd like to get the TH900 again for another side by side comparison.

For those interested, I've been driving everything with a Grace m9XX. The PH with this setup might kill my TH900 itch! I liked the TH900 but they would require some mod for me to quench the highs a bit. They sound great but I feel over time, I will develop sensitivity to their intensity.

 

[HiFiChris]

Hey guys, if anyone is interested, here is what I have to say and think about the TH-X00 (Mahogany) after owning it for around a year: http://kopfhoerer-lounge.blogspot.com/2017/05/fostex-x-massdrop-th-x00-mahogany-Review.html
It's written in German but there should be a Google translator widget in the navigation/header bar that should provide a halfway understandable translation into English.

 

[VRacer-111]

I don't like the Dekoni attenuator rings. Yes, they do raise the sub-bass output, but they also negatively effect the mids and highs some. And of all the pads I've tried I've only found one that really works for me, and it hasn't been made in many years. The following is what has been the magic-3 combo on the TH-X00 PH's for me.

1. Lawton Tune-up kit - driver damping only! At recent audio meet another person also had Lawton Tune-up kit (full) on his Mahoganies and with my pad setup swapped to the Magonies it was a noticeably difference to driver only application, bass impact reduced and overall more recessed sounding along with too restrained mids and highs. The Lawton kit (driver damping only) really improves the clarity and detail greatly...probably the largest impact on improving sound quality of a TH-X00. Gets rid of the stock congested/compressed sound quality and really brings out details you have never heard before along with very noticeable improvement in instrument seperation. #1 mod that should be done above anything else.

2. J-Money sheepskin earpads....somebody REALLY needs to make a clone of these pads. Mine are 8 years old that I got for my Denon AH-D2000's...those pads are the key to getting clear, live open headphone sound with rediculous closed headphone bass that does not roll into the mids. The mids and highs are clearer and more detailed as well.

3. Custom attenuators that go only in the back portion of the earpad, inside the earcup area. These can be made from a variety of thin stiff materials (manila folder/thin plastic/etc...) and shape experimented and played around with. Main thing is you don't want a round 'donut' with material in the front section of the earpad. The Dekoni donut attenuators, in comparison to the custom rear only attenuators, sound bloated and mess with the mid and high detail/clarity.

Picture of custom attenuator (which slips inside the ear opening of the earpad):

 

[jmills8]

I just mounted the Dekoni attenuation rings in my ZMF Eikon pads on a THX00 Mahogany and yowsers! Subbass! More fullness to percussions if these didn't already bring it. 100% recommended. Now, the stock sound awesome but when listening to Chevelle, the stock configuration lacks the subbass reproduction from many of their tracks. I didn't realize this until I went to a Chevelle concert. I wanted that feeling or closer to it.

2 weekends ago, I listened to a friend's TH900 with ZMF Cowhide angled pads (similar to Alpha pad dimensions) and next to my THX00 PH stock, the TH900 bass was more deep, full and enjoyable but not worth the price jump from $450 to ~$1400. I then pulled the stock pads off my THX00 Mahogany, placed them on the TH900's, then listened side by side next to my THX00 PH stock and whereas before they were near comparable on bass, now my first reaction is, where did the bass go on the PH? The TH900 reproduction was outstanding and the control was great. Not flabby bass, but tight, full, controlled and IMPACTFUL notes. The attenuation plates are no hype!

I loaned my PH's to a friend but when I get them back, I'm putting these attenuation plates/ZMF Eikon pads on them to get more subbass. I'd like to get the TH900 again for another side by side comparison.

For those interested, I've been driving everything with a Grace m9XX. The PH with this setup might kill my TH900 itch! I liked the TH900 but they would require some mod for me to quench the highs a bit. They sound great but I feel over time, I will develop sensitivity to their intensity.

Can you make a video?

 

[abirdie4me]

I don't like the Dekoni attenuator rings. Yes, they do raise the sub-bass output, but they also negatively effect the mids and highs some. And of all the pads I've tried I've only found one that really works for me, and it hasn't been made in many years. The following is what has been the magic-3 combo on the TH-X00 PH's for me.

1. Lawton Tune-up kit - driver damping only! At recent audio meet another person also had Lawton Tune-up kit (full) on his Mahoganies and with my pad setup swapped to the Magonies it was a noticeably difference to driver only application, bass impact reduced and overall more recessed sounding along with too restrained mids and highs. The Lawton kit (driver damping only) really improves the clarity and detail greatly...probably the largest impact on improving sound quality of a TH-X00. Gets rid of the stock congested/compressed sound quality and really brings out details you have never heard before along with very noticeable improvement in instrument seperation. #1 mod that should be done above anything else.

2. J-Money sheepskin earpads....somebody REALLY needs to make a clone of these pads. Mine are 8 years old that I got for my Denon AH-D2000's...those pads are the key to getting clear, live open headphone sound with rediculous closed headphone bass that does not roll into the mids. The mids and highs are clearer and more detailed as well.

3. Custom attenuators that go only in the back portion of the earpad, inside the earcup area. These can be made from a variety of thin stiff materials (manila folder/thin plastic/etc...) and shape experimented and played around with. Main thing is you don't want a round 'donut' with material in the front section of the earpad. The Dekoni donut attenuators, in comparison to the custom rear only attenuators, sound bloated and mess with the mid and high detail/clarity.

Picture of custom attenuator (which slips inside the ear opening of the earpad):

Thank you for this, saved my Alpha pads and made them a good solution for my TH-X00 mahogany.